From images of fake anti-Ukraine billboards to posts showing false graffiti against Ukraine’s leader, pro-Russian disinformation online is targeting Western backing after two years of war.
AFP’s fact-checkers have debunked false content that is intended to support or encourage the idea of a growing public fatigue in Europe and the United States. Dpa’s fact-checkers debunked that a study allegedly proves that the war in Ukraine is much more harmful to the climate than Germany’s CO2 emissions.
Pro-Russian disinformation is most effective when it builds on existing and divisive issues like immigration and purchasing power, experts say. “The most successful narratives are the ones that tap into something that’s already an issue, it’s much harder to build from scratch,” said Elina Treyger, Senior Political Scientist at RAND Corporation, a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decision making through research and analysis.
“By multiplying the content so much, you’ll inevitably hit your target”, agreed Jakub Kalenský, Deputy Director of the European Centre of Excellence for Combating Hybrid Threats (Hybrid CoE).
When the war in Ukraine began, for example, the Middle East and Africa were targeted with tailor-made narratives based on anti-American, anti-Western and colonial sentiments, explained Associate Professor Christine Dugoin-Clément from the Sorbonne Business School in Paris (IAE Paris).
Another tactic is to divert journalists with information overload. One campaign, the so-called “Operation Matryoshka”, has aimed to keep journalists busy by spreading anti-Ukraine fake news and then challenging Western media to verify it.
Another extensive operation, the “Doppelgänger” operation, which was attributed to Russia by French intelligence, uses visuals that mimic Western media.
This article is part of the enr’s EU Elections Spotlight: Disinformation in Europe. The content is based on news by agencies participating in the enr.